Thursday, March 22, 2012

Five police officers were taken to hospital on Thursday after being mauled by a "pit bull-type" dog during a raid in east London, Scotland Yard said.

Four of the constables were said to be in a serious but stable condition after being injured in the attack in Albert Square in Stratford, Newham, which happened when they went to arrest a suspect at around 9am.

The remaining officer suffered minor injuries.

The dog was shot dead by a specialist firearms squad following the incident and the suspect, a man aged in his 20s thought to be the animal's owner, was detained for grievous bodily harm and kidnapping.

Police said the raid was part of Operation Big Wing, a major Metropolitan police initiative aimed at wanted suspects across the capital.

Ownership of pit bull terriers was banned in Britain in 1991 following a spate of attacks by dangerous dogs.